Flexible roof covering



N. Z. BUTTERICK.

FLEXIBLE ROOF COVERING.

HLED' MAH. 20, 1922.

@91 v www @Mime/wmf ylatented Feb. 20, 1923.

NAASON Z. BUTTERICK, JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA.

FLEXIBLE ROOF COVERING.

Application filed March 20, 1922. Serial No. 545,313.

T o all whom it may Gomera.'

Be it known that I, NAAsoN Z. BUTTERICK,

` a citizen of the United States, residing at Jacksonville, in the county of Duval and State of Florida, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Flexible Roof Coverings, of which the following is a specilication.

This invention relates to roof coverings, consisting of strips or elements adapted to be arrangedl in overlapping rows, the finished roof presenting an ornamental, attractive appearance.

The roofing elements or strips are preferably cut from a continuous sheet of treated fabric consisting of a fibrous body impregnated with a waterproof compound such yas is ordinarily employed for the purpose and may be'provided with an external layerof weatherproof material. These strips may be cut or shea-red from a continuous sheet of such material in such a manner that all of the material enters into the strips without waste.

Roof coverings have heretofore been constructed of strips cut from continuous sheets of weatherproof fabric and laid in overlapped relation to produce ornamental designs simulating shingles or tiles. In all such cases, however, the strips were so cut or shaped that the resulting configuration presented an absolutely uniform design. While some of these designs are very attractive and were frequently relieved by the use of contrasting colors or simulation of shadows here and there, yet, withal their appearance was more or less monotonous.

I have discovered a method of cutting the roofing strips so that they may be laid in Asuch a manner as to entirely break up the monotony above referred to and at the same time present the exceedingly attractive appearance of the well-known thatched roofs which were quite prevalent years ago in the old country and which still delight the eye of the tourist who ventures from the beaten paths into the rural districts of England, Scotland and other countries. The eyenever tires of the irregular wavy lines of the thatched roof. One of the main purposes of my invention is to provide roofing strips which may be overlaid in such a manner that the exposed portions between adjacent curvilinear edges or margins of the v strips presentr the irregular wavy configuration simulating the corresponding portions'` of a thatched roof. By reason of the flexibility of these felt composition rooting strips, they may be carried or bent over the projecting edges of the roof in such a manner as to give the appearance of the usual thickness lof a thatched roof.

In the following description, I shall refer to the accompanying drawings in which Figure l is a perspective -view of a portion of a roof having a. covering embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is a top plan view of a portion of a roof showing the manner of overlapping the roofing strips; Fig. i3 is a transverse sectional view onv the line 3 3 of Fig. 2; and Fig. 4 is a bottom plan view of a portion of a roof showing the manner of overlapping the strips as it appears from'underneath. i

The roofing strips 5 are cut from sheets, perhaps 40 feet long or even more, these sheets being first severed into strips substantially double the width of the finished strips and these are then cut through the central portion by longitudinal .wavy lines of irregular curvature, each of the strips thus resulting in two finished roofing strips having one straight longitudinal edge and the opposite edge of irregular curvature.

In laying the strips upon the roof in overlapping relation, the adjacent strips are selected with their wavy edges all pointing downwardly or in the same direction and so chosen that the. irregular curvilinear edges or margins of .adjacent overlapping strips will not be parallel. In other words,- two identically formed strips are never laid adjacent each other or if they are so laid, o-ne strip is slid longitudinally so that the corresponding curved margins will not be in alignment. It is sufli-cient to see that this does not occur at each end, since if they are not parallel at one point they willv not be at any point throughout their length.. Obviously, the strips as a whole must overlap the same distance, this distance being regulated by spacing the straight rear edges 5 the same distance apart, as indicated in the rear or underneath plan view shown in Fig. 4;.

-When the strips are laid in the manner above described, the exposed portions between any two adjacent irregular wavy margins 5b will present the undulating irregular wavy configuration, illustrated in the top plan view Shown in Fig. 2. Those who are familiar with the thatched roofs frequently found in the rural distri-cts of the old countries, which are constructed of sod turf and straw, will appreciate the fact that these wavy undulating lines 'produced in the construction of my roof covering simulate very closely the appearance of such thatched This resemblance is carried out more completely by the manner in which my roofing strips can be curved or bent with greater or less fullness over the ends and edges of the roofs so that they give the appearance of thickness, as I have endeavored to illustrate in the pictorial illustration shown in Fig. 1.

I have described in detail the particular construction illustrated in the accompanying drawings, but it will be evident that various position fibrous material having one straight longitudinal-edge and the opposite edge lprovided with serrations of such curvature that when laid with others in overlapping rows with the serrations longitudinally displaced with respect to each other the portions of a strip exposed between adjacent curvilinear edges or margins continuously vary in width, thereby producing an irregular wavy configuration simulating the corresponding portions of a thatched roof.

In testimony whereof I aiix my signature.

NAASON Z. BUTTERICK. 

